Sterling is finally leaving Chelsea and arriving to join an Arsenal legend

Raheem Sterling will try to revive his career at Feyenoord, the Dutch giants have confirmed. A deal has been signed until the end of the season, a work permit has been requested, and Sterling will arrive in Rotterdam for his official presentation.

Under normal circumstances, signing a name of this stature would be out of reach for a club like Feyenoord. But everything that has happened in Raheem Sterling’s career recently has been far from normal, which is how he became an available option for Feyenoord, where he will be coached by Robin van Persie.

Sterling is only 31 years old, but biologically he is older, having entered the football machine at a very young age when he emerged as a wonderkid in Liverpool’s first team. From there, he moved in a mega transfer (€63.7 million) to Manchester City, where he spent years as one of Pep Guardiola’s key players. He became a regular for England (82 caps) and was always among the highest-paid players in the Premier League…

Until the summer of 2022, when he moved to Chelsea for €56.2 million. A rare example of City recouping most of their investment and squeezing the maximum out of a player.

That’s when the steep decline in Sterling’s career began.

From a player who averaged around 50 matches per season and consistently hit double figures in goals (131 goals in 339 games for City), he soon became surplus to requirements at Stamford Bridge. He played two seasons in far poorer form than in Manchester, spent the penultimate season on loan at Arsenal where he scored just once in 28 matches, and returned to Chelsea last summer.

The club completely wrote him off, but the problem was his massive contract worth just under €20 million gross per season. No one was willing to take on such a salary, and Sterling spent the first part of the season stagnating at Chelsea. He recently agreed a contract termination, received a few million in compensation, and was given a free hand to find a new club.

Expensive marriage is over: Sterling leaves Chelsea

Various clubs were mentioned as interested—from Napoli and English Championship sides to exotic destinations like Azerbaijan and the UAE—but in the end, he chose Feyenoord’s offer. It’s clear the Dutch club can’t pay even a third of what he earned at Chelsea, but football should now come before money in his life, because he still has time to put his career back on the right track.

ENGLAND - FA CUP

Friday

22.45: (9.50) Hull (6.25) Chelsea (1.27)

22.45: (3.25) Wrexham (3.35) Ipswich (2.25)

Saturday

15.15: (8.50) Burton (4.90) West Ham (1.37)

18.00: (1.42) Burnley (4.50) Mansfield (7.75)

18.00: (1.02) Man.City (16.0) Salford City (60.0)

18.00: (2.25) Norwich (3.40) WBA (3.20)

18.00: (4.60) Port Vale (3.60) Bristol City (1.80)

18.00: (1.75) Southampton (3.60) Leicester (4.90)

20.45: (2.20) Aston Villa (3.60) Newcastle (3.05)

23.00: (1.55) Liverpool (4.20) Brighton (5.90)

Sunday

15.00: (3.25) Birmingham (3.45) Leeds (2.20)

16.30: (6.75) Grimsby (4.40) Wolverhampton (1.47)

17.00: (5.00) Oxford (3.50) Sunderland (1.75)

17.00: (4.90) Stoke (3.60) Fulham (1.75)

19.30: (1.03) Arsenal (15.0) Wigan (50.0)

Monday

22.30: (12.0) Macclesfield (6.50) Brentford (1.22)

***odds are subject to change***